Music leaf-turning machine



Jan. 23, 1934. J. H. MILLER MUSIC LEAF TURNING MACHINE f $74M b FiledJun 29, 1932 Gum/MA 5 Jan. 23, 1934. v .1. H. MILLER 1,944,295

MUSIC LEAF TURNING MACHINE Filed July 29, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 PatentedJan. 23, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 6 Claims.

10 A further object of this invention is to provide a machine orapparatus of the character referred to, which shall be of acomparatively simple construction and capable of use in all requiredsituations; which shall be portable, light in weight,

16 devoid of mechanical complications, and adapted for use in turningleaves of different sizes.

A further object is to provide a leaf turning apparatus in which theleaves of a book or pack may be turned consecutively from right to left,

20 without the use of the players hands, and by which the leaves, afteruse may be restored to their original position for repetition of theoperation.

According to my invention, the leaf turning 26 device comprises a musicpiece or book holding rack, which is intended and adapted to rest on asuitable music stand, table or other support, in front of the performeror player, and which rack has mounted thereon a series of independ- 30cut pivotally arranged swinging and leaf carrying members, provided withclamps for attachment to-the leaves of the book, piece or pack. Thesemembers are so mounted as to be capable of being swung from right toleft, and to carry separately with each member, and from right to left,a single leaf.

The means for swinging these members, comprise a pair of pivotallyarranged discs, one of which constitutes a grooved pulley, to beoperated through a cord, wire or chain, as hereinafter particularlyexplained while the other is provided with a tangentially extending armmem her, and which is arranged and adapted, on actuation of the cord, tobe brought into operative connection with the pulley and caused therebyto swing from right to left, carrying with it one of the leaf carryingmembers, with which the turning member is caused to engage or interlock,and, with the latter, a leaf from the music book 5 or pack, lying on theright hand side of the rack and depositing such leaf on the left side ofthe rack, the effect being the same as that produced in turning theleaves by hand in the ordinary manner.

While a separate turner is used for each leaf to be turned, but oneturning member is used, the arrangement being such that, as the turnedleaf carrying member is operated, the turning member becomes disengagedfrom the turned member, and by the action of a suitably arranged spring,restores the turning member to its original position to engage with andactuate another leaf carrying member, and with it to turn another leaffrom right to left.

According to the invention, the turned leaves, with their carryingmembers, are adapted after use to be restored to the right hand side ofthe rack, either singly or together, so that the leaves of the same bookor piece may be again turned, or

a new book or piece substituted.

The invention involved consists in the novel construction andcombination of elements hereinafter more specifically described havingin View the objects hereinafter recited, and other objects which willbecome apparent hereinafter, refer- Fig. 4 is a similar View of theturning member without the operating pulley.

Fig. 5 is a face view of the operating pulley for the turning member.

Fig. 6 is an inner face view of one of shaft supporting standards forthe turning members.

Fig. '7 is a sectional view on line IV of Fig. 2.

Fig. 8 is an edge view of a leaf holding clamp.

Fig. 9 is a side elevation of a music desk, with leaf turning mechanismin position thereon.

The machine or apparatus embodying my invention comprises a music rack1, consisting of a skeleton frame of rectangular form, which ispreferably made in two sections, 2 and 3 respectively, which are hingedtogether, as indicated at 4, so that it may be folded for convenience inhandling, transportation or storing. This rack is intended and adaptedto rest on a table, music desk or piano, and is entirely portable so asto be supported in any convenient manner and in various positions Withinconvenient View of the user.

At the upper end of one of the rack sections there is attached asupporting base for the leaf turning mechanism, consisting of a hollowboxlike casing 5, open at its under side, and supporting on its upperside the standards or pillars 6,

7, 8, securely attached thereto. The standards or pillars 6 and "Iconstitute the bearing for a shaft 9, on which are rotatably mounted theleaf carrying members 10, through the movement of which the leaves of amusic book or pack, are turned from right to left.

Th se members consist each of a disc 10 and a flattened bar 10 extendinglaterally therefrom.

The discs 1G are arranged side by side in parallel planes, and the l0lies in planes perpendicular or at right angles to the planes of thediscs.

The several bars 10 are connected to their respective discs by short,narrow neck portions 11, situated at different distances from the edgesof the bars so as to lie beside each other in the same row.

The bars 10 are aranged and adapted to be in the arc of a circle, so asto swing from positions above the right hand side of the music rack, topositions over the left hand side and vice versa, and to turn the leavesto which the bars l0 are attached from side to side of the rack, as whenthe leaves are turned in the usual manner.

To hold and turn the leaves, the turning bars 10 are equipped with leafholding clamps 12, which are pivotally attached to the downwardlyprojecting arms 13, of the bars 10 and are adapted to be swung to thepositions shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, out of the way of the leavesof the book and the upper edges of the rack when required. These clampsare provided with sepa rate pivotally attached jaws or arms to hold theleaves in position, and which are laterally turnable to admit the leavesand hold them in position.

In arranging and adapting the leaves of a book or pack of interfoldedleaves, the bears 10 are brought over to the left of the rack, as shownin the dotted lines in Fig. 1, and rest one above the other.

The book or pack is then placed on the left hand side of the rack, withthe folded or bound edge of the book at the right, or in the middle.

The uppermost bar 10 is now turned over to the right end and the clampspread to receive the leaf. The leaf is then turned to the right andclamped in place ready to turn. Each leaf carrying member and leaf isturned to the right as above described until all the leaves that it isdesired to turn are resting on the right side and lie in the form of aclosed pack or book, in which position the leaves are adapted to beturned successively to the left by the operation of the turningmechanism which will be now described.

A shaft 15 is supported in bearings in the standards or pillars, '7, 8,and has loosely mounted thereon a grooved pulley 16, which is coupled bya coiled spring 15 to the pillar or standard 8, lying within a recess17, so that when the pulley is turned from right to left the spring willbe so wound and tensioned as to turn the pulley from left to right,after a leaf has been turned from right to left.

The pulley 16, as illustrated, is formed with the short arcuate slots 16concentric with the axis of the pulley, to receive the pins 1'7projecting from the face of the disc or plate 18, mounted loosely on theshaft of the pulley and forming part of the turning member 19, whichproject tangentially from the disc.

This disc and pulley are engageable with each other so that when thepulley is turned from left to right it will turn the disc in the samedirection, carrying with it the turning member 19.

The object of the arcuate slots in the pulley and the pins on the faceof the turning disc is to allow the pulley a limited amount of play, orlost motion, for the purpose hereinafter set forth.

As shown and indicated there is a separate leaf carrying member for eachleaf 0; music. These are successively turned from right to left by meansof the single turning member 19.

To engage the turning member with the turned arms, each of the latter isprovided with a short plate or bar 20, of inverted L shag end of whichis bent or folded to form a pocket 21, open at the lower portion, andpreferably having a beveled or oblique lip.

The turning member 19, has pivoted on its up per surface a T shapedlever 21 one cross arm 22, of which has attached to it the operatingcord or chain 23, which passes over the pulley 16, and leads to asuitably arranged pedal by which the cord or chain is operated.

The other cross member 24, has attached to it a coiled spring 25, whichis secured at one end to the turning member, and exerts a pull on thelever 21 against the pull of the operating cord.

The operating cord leads from the pulley 16, to the pulley 26, thence toa pulley 27, both located as shown, and thence downward between theinner edges of the rack and through a series of eyes 28, attached to theframing of the music rack.

A short spiral spring 36, is attached to the rack and connected to thecord at both ends of the spring, which exerts a strain on the cord andpedal so as to relax the cord between the spring and pulley 16, afterthe pedal has been depressed, in order to allow the lever 20, on theturning member to assume a proper position for engagement with the leafcarrying members.

In Fig. 1 of the drawings the machine is shown with the several elementsin positions for turning the leaves 31, of a book or collection ofleaves, the uppermost leaf being held in position by the clamp or clampscarried by the leaf carrying members.

Now upon pulling the cord or chain the pulley 16 will be rotated a shortdistance without engaging the disc of the turning member, the arcuateslots permitting such free rotation, and

the outer V the lever 21 will be swung into the pocket-at the outer endof the post-and the turning member will therefore be in operativeengagement with the turned member to which the post is attached.

The tension on the cord being continued, the

pulley 16 will be further rotated and being ngaged with the disc of theturning member, will rotate this member and swing the leaf carryingmember with an attached leaf, through the arc of a circle, from right toleft of the music rack, to the position shown in dotted lines to theleft of Fig. 1.

As will be seen, the shaft of the leaf carrying member is out of centerwith the shaft of the pulley, being slightly to the left of the latter.

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As heretofore explained, the pulley 16 is loose on its shaft andcommunicates movement to the turning member through the arcuate slots ofthe pulley and the pins projecting from the disc, the pulley thus beingturnable a short distance without engagement with the turning member anddisc. The purpose of this construction is first, to ease the back pullon the operating cord, so that the spring 25 can pull the lever 21 toits proper position on the turning member 19; secondly, when it isdesired to turn another leaf, to allow the lever 21 to enter the pocket21 before the pulley 16 engages with the disc posts of the turningmember, after which operation the pull on the operating cord will rotatethe pulley so that the pins on the disc will be locked into engagementwith the slotted portion of the pulley, and the turning memberpositively turned from right to left, carrying with it the leafcarryingmember.

It is to be noted that the lever arm or finger 21 rests on theleaf-carrying member on the right hand, and would be under the leafcarrying memher when on the left hand.

The shaft 9 of the turned or leaf-carrying members, however, being asbefore explained, off the center relatively to the shaft of the pulley16 and turning member, whereby the turned member and turning arms becomedisengaged when turned to the extreme left. The turning member when nowswung to the right, after the turning of a leaf, will lie in theposition shown in Fig. 1, that is, above the next leaf carrying member,ready for the turning of another leaf.

When all the leaves of book or musical score have been turned from rightto left, they may be restored to their original position on the right,but in order to avoid the difficulty of having the .turning member atthe bottom of, or below the leaves, which would happen if the turningmember were allowed to swing back to the right after the turning of thelast leaf, the turning member is restrained from so. swinging back tothe right by a pivoted manually operable latch or detent 30, which holdsthe turning member in a right hand position, thus allowing the turnedleaves to be returned to their original position, one above the other,after which the turning member may be released by disengaging the latch30 therefrom, whereupon it will swing back to the right, above theleaves to occupy the proper position for repetition of the operation.

As will be seen, the leaf clamps are pivotally attached to the bracketson the leaf carrying members and hence may be swung out of the way inparked position, so as to lie parallel to and above the music rack. Thisis an important and useful feature, as it allows the leaves of a book ofmusic lying on the music rack to be turned freely by hand by the playeruntil the particular T piece of music to be played, composed of aplurality of leaves, is reached, without removing the book from therack. The clamps may then be attached to the several leaves of the bookrequired to be turned.

Provision is made for the accommodation of leaves of different sizes, bythe use of a movable support on the frame of the rack, consisting of atransverse bar 32, having dogs 33, pivoted at the ends and engaging withthe teeth 34, on the side edges of the rack.

This is adjustable up and down, to bring the margins of the leaves tothe proper position relatively to the clamps.

While I have shown two sets of clamps, arranged in spaced relation, butone set will be usually required, to wit, the outer set. The inner setmay be turned out of the way when not required and can be used if a leafis too small tobe attached to the outer clamp. In this way the machineis adapted to be used with leaves of any size.

When adjusting the leaves and attaching the clamps for the first time,the turning member is pulled over to the left and held there temporarilyby the latch 30; the turnable or leaf carrying members are arranged oneabove the other on the left hand side of the rack and the uppermost leafcarrying member swings over to the right, and the clamp or clamps,thereof attached to the upper edge or margin of the last leaf of thebook or piece.

Another leaf carrying member is swung from the pile on the left to theright, and attached to the next leaf. The operation is repeated untilall the leaves are attached to the leaf-carrying members. The turningmember is now released and allowed to swing to the right, under theimpulse of its spring, and assume the position shown in full lines inFig. l, with the lever arm or finger 21 resting on the post 20, outsidethe pocket 21 and out of engagement with the leaf holding arm. Themechanism is now in position for the turning of the leaves.

To operate the machine the cord is now pulled and the pulley is turnedslightly to the left, causing the lever 21 to swing into the pocket 21and engage a leaf carrying member. A further pull on the cord brings thepulley 16 into engagement with the turning member, and causes the latterto swing over to the left, carrying with it the attached leaf. The cordbeing now relaxed and as before explained the turning member is nowreleased from engagement with the leaf carrying member the former willnow spring back to its original position.

Another leaf is now attached to the next leaf carrying member and theoperation repeated.

While the music rack has been shown and described as an element of themachine, it is obvious that it may if desirable, be dispensed with andthe leaf turning mechanism supported on a suitable base. attached to atable, music-stand or other holder, with the operating cord and pedalarranged to suit the convenience of the player.

I claim:

1. A leaf turning mechanism comprising a series of pivotally mountedleaf carrying members, adapted when swung in the arc of a circle toshift the attached leaves of a book or music piece from one side to theother of a support, means for swinging said members in succession saidmeans comprising a cord, a loosely mounted pulley operated by said cord,a leaf turning member normally disengaged from said pulley andengageable thereby when the cord is drawn, means carried by said leafturning member for automatically engaging a leaf carrying member whenthe cord is drawn, means for automatically disengaging the engagedmembers at the end of a swinging movement, and means for automaticallyrestoring the turning member to its normal position after suchdisengagement.

2. A leaf turning machine as set forth in claim 1, in which a leafcarrying member, and the pulley and associated turning members are 7.1,mounted on parallel axes, out of axial alignment with each other and theleaf carrying and leaf turning members are rotatable in arcs of circleseccentric to each other.

3. A leaf turning machine, as claimed in claim 15$ 1, in which the meansfor operatively connecting the turning member to a carrying member,comprises a T shaped lever pivotally mounted on the turning member andhaving cross arms connected respectively to the operating cord and to aspring attached to the turning member, whereby on tensioning the cord,the lever will be swung into engagement with the leaf carrying member,and upon release of said tension the lever will be disengaged by theaction of the spring.

4. A leaf turning machine as set forth in claim 1, in which the pulleyis formed with arcuate slots, and the turning member provided with anoperating spring arranged and adapted to automatically operate the samewhen the pulley is rotated a limited distance independently of theturning member, whereby the turning member and the eaf carrying memberswill become initially engaged before movement of the leaf carryingmember.

5. A leaf turning machine, comprising a plurality of pivotally mountedleaf carrying members, a single leaf turning member, through which saidcarrying members are operated, a pulley having a spring to actuate it inone direction and engageable from each of said leaf carrying members, apulley actuating cord adapted to be operated by a pedal and meanswhereby on the rotation of said pulley in one direction the said singlemember will be engaged with a leaf carrying member prior to the movementof the latter, and the latter thereafter swung on its axis from right toleft, the said leaf turning member and the single member being on axisout of alignment with each other.

6. A leaf turning machine comprising a plurality of pivoted leafcarrying members, a single leaf turning member adapted to be broughtinto engagement, successively with each leaf carrying member to swingthe latter from right to left of a supporting plane; a cord adapted tobe operated by a pedal mechanism, means whereby the said single memberand carrying member will be brought into co-acting engagement when thecord is drawn and caused to swing together from right to left and meanswhereby the leaf turning and the leaf carrying members will beautomatically disengaged from each other at the end of their cojointswinging movement, and the said single member restored to its originalposition at the right.

JOSEPH H. MILLER.

